Nothing seems to count these days unless it has excellent reviews. Unfortunately, employee reviews tend to lean towards the negative end of the spectrum. This is because employees who feel wronged by a company want to vent publicly to damage the company’s reputation.

Businesses that have lots of negative reviews can find their brand name irreparably damaged. While you can’t remove a bad review, you can take action to manage the situation.

Respond to Negative Reviews

Responding to negative reviews shows you’re sitting up and taking notice. Never get defensive or accusatory towards the author (even though it can be tempting). Simply state that your company has considered the concerns and is working hard to improve the situation.

Always write a personal response instead of copy/pasting the same blurb every time. Personalization demonstrates you’re taking the time to read each review and respond accordingly.

Request Current Employees to Leave a Review

If you’ve got plenty of satisfied and happy employees, why not ask them to write a review about their experience? This will bump up your average rating and give a more balanced view of your workplace.

Don’t force or put pressure on your staff. Ask a select few employees or those who leave on good terms. This way, the reviews will be genuine.

Learn and Make Changes

Listen to employee feedback and, more importantly, act on it. Send out employee satisfaction surveys and hold departmental meetings to get a feel for the workforce’s mood.

Recurring issues or problems should be dealt with and improved. If you get a bad review, take note, and make sure the same problems don’t happen again.

Add Content to the Review Site

Sites such as Glassdoor allow you to bulk out your company profile with lots of different content. By providing ample information about your company and what it’s like to work there, you will shift the focus away from the bad reviews.

Ultimately, the way to deal with bad reviews is to address them honestly and professionally. This includes making improvements to your business, which is a great way to turn a negative review into a positive for your business.